Around the Kingdom in 80 Days
by suspiciousteapot
Summary: Ellimere wants to travel.


"I should know it better." Ellimere said as she walked into the solar.

"Know what better?" asked her father patiently, looking up from his papers. Her mother looked up too from where she sat beside her husband, making notes in a small handbook.

"The Kingdom! The people! You've both have been almost everywhere fixing the Stones and whatnot, but I've only been to the cities along the route to Ancelstierre, and then only briefly."

Touchstone frowned and shared a look with Sabriel. Ellimere waited.

"Where would you start?" Her mother asked, looking over at her.

She was ready for this, she had begun planning the trip a while back, just a few months after they returned from the ordeal with Orannis. She'd loved running various parts of the kingdom's business, but since they'd returned from what was almost the end of the world, she had been feeling restless. For the first time, the long petty court sessions had started to frustrate her and she understood why Sam hated them. That worried her.

"I'll start with Nestowe, then to Edge to help Sam with the settling there. After that I'll head to Roble's Town and Uppside and continue north, visiting each town on the way."

Her father leaned back and considered the proposition.

"Who would you have with you?" He queried.

"Enzi and Kal." She replied, naming a friendly guard and a childhood friend respectively.

"Do they know that?" Touchstone asked, amused.

"They will soon. And anyways -" She started to reply. Of course they would want to see the kingdom. Why was he so amused by the notion that they wouldn't?

"They may not be so eager to leave their lives as you might assume." Sabriel interrupted gently, reminding her that others had lives as well.

"What does it matter? I'll go alone then." She said, exasperated. Kal and Enzi wouldn't be shocked at all, she talked about it so often she know they'd probably ask what took her so long.

Touchstone frowned again at that. "I know you're fully competent, but I do like your idea of having a guard. If only for my peace of mind, and your mother's."

"But you agree it's a good idea? The trip." She wheedled.

"Yes. It would be good for you to know the kingdom better." He said. "My sister Julith once wanted to do the same. She travelled to the far North, to Ancelstierre and then left for Okawi."

Ellimere was curious. Her father sometimes spoke about his siblings, but rarely without being asked.

"Why did she want to travel?" she queried.

"She wanted to escape politics for a while and she was bored." Touchstone answered, smiling.

"But as a traveling royal she still would have had to play a role, surely."

Touchstone smiled. "In what way?"

"Well, people would know where she came from and who she was, so at least she could make friends and learn about their situation, needs and strengths." She knew her father was testing her.

"Not that I'll really need that information for many years, but it could be helpful for you too." Ellimere said hastily, more to reassure herself than them.

"With any luck you won't, but yes it would prove useful in the present too." Sabriel agreed. "Though remember that you do not have to work all of the time. Go sightseeing. Relax. But also write to us."

"I will Mother, I promise. Now that we're all up to date, I'll leave in a week." Ellimere said confidently, excitement bubbling up inside of her.

"Slow down, you have much to prepare." Touchstone reminded her.

"I've been thinking about this trip for a while." She admitted.

"Oh?" her parents asked simultaneously.

"I've just been feeling restless for a while now. I feel like…" she trailed off, unable to pinpoint the feeling.

"Like life in the capital moves too slowly?" He suggested.

"Yes! I know there's lots to do, but I still feel that way." She agreed.

"Your mother and I both felt like that once." He said with a small smile, sharing another look with his wife.

"How long do you think it will take?" He questioned.

"No more than 80 days." She replied, shrugging.

Touchstone nodded at her estimate, then smiled broadly.

Sabriel rose and quickly pulled her daughter into a tight hug, which she returned happily. "Take two weeks though We should have a proper goodbye." Ellimere nodded. Another week would be fine.

"This will be good for you, and for the kingdom, but especially for you." Touchstone said, gently cupping her face in his hand.

He kissed her on the forehead. "Continue with your planning then. Best start with asking your friends."

"I will. Thanks Dad! Thanks Mother!" she called over her shoulder as she turned and almost jogged down the hall.

"She's as old as we were when we started all of this." Touchstone said softly when Ellimere had disappeared from sight.

Sabriel took his hand and squeezed it gently. "She's not a little girl anymore." She agreed.

…

The light had just broken over the city, which was just beginning to show signs of life.

Ellimere breathed in the crisp morning air. Beside her, Kal yawned. Unlike her and Enzi, Kal was unused to waking up before dawn.

First to Edge. She felt light in a way she hadn't for a long while. A whole new adventure was opening to her and she was eager to set out. She was determined to come to know the entire kingdom that would one day be hers. And perhaps, after that, it would be time to see some of what lay beyond the Old Kingdom.


End file.
